Torchitorio V (died 1256), born John and known as Chiano or Chianni, was the ''Giudice'' (Judge) of Cagliari from 1250 to his death. His reign was brief but transformative in the

history of Sardinia Archaeological evidence of prehistoric human settlement on the island of Sardinia is present in the form of nuraghes and other prehistoric monuments, which dot the land. The recorded history of Sardinia begins with its contacts with the various ...

. He may have been the son of his predecessor William II. All that is certain about his family is that he was himself a Massa and that his mother was a Serra. His birthplace and date are unknown and he had no wife or children. The date of his succession is also presumptive, as there is a silence in the sources between the last mention of William II and the first of Torchitorio V. When he first appeared as Judge in 1254, he was ruling in name only; the real power in Cagliari was in the hands of the families of the

Gherardeschi The House della Gherardesca was an old noble family of the Republic of Pisa, dating back as early as the 11th century of Longobard origin. They were an important one of the most prominent initially in Pisa, then of Volterra and eventually and of ...

, Visconti, and

Capraia Capraia is an Italian island, the northwesternmost of the seven islands of the Tuscan Archipelago, and the third largest after Elba and Giglio. It is also a ''comune'' (Capraia Isola) belonging to the Province of Livorno. The island has a p ...

. Chiano did homage to the

Republic of Pisa The Republic of Pisa ( it, Repubblica di Pisa) was an independent state centered on the Tuscan city of Pisa, which existed from the 11th to the 15th century. It rose to become an economic powerhouse, a commercial center whose merchants dominated ...

for Cagliari. In 1254, he took over the palace in Cagliari, though probably not by force. On 23 September, he drew up a will, declaring his heirs to be his cousins William III and

Rinaldo Cepolla Rinaldo may refer to: *Renaud de Montauban (also spelled Renaut, Renault, Italian: Rinaldo di Montalbano, Dutch: Reinout van Montalbaen, German: Reinhold von Montalban), a legendary knight in the medieval Matter of France *Rinaldo (Jerusalem Delive ...

. Frustrated by the increasing interference of Pisa in his '' giudicato'', Chiano cautiously turned to the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the La ...

for allies. In February 1256, he sent two envoys (''

procurator Procurator (with procuracy or procuratorate referring to the office itself) may refer to: * Procurator, one engaged in procuration, the action of taking care of, hence management, stewardship, agency * ''Procurator'' (Ancient Rome), the title o ...

es'') to Genoa to sign a pact on 20 April. On 25 May, Chiano affirmed it in the cathedral chapel of his castle in the presence of Malocello and Percivalle Doria. By the terms of the treaty, both allies owed the other military assistance in all their wars. Chiano became a Genoese citizen and rendered homage to the two representatives of the Republic. Cagliari granted Genoa the tax-free export of salt. All Cagliaritan castles were to be shared between the alliance, but in reality Genoa controlled them. Chiano was left with only a house in Cagliari, but he was offered a palace in Genoa and the hand in marriage of daughter of Malocello's family, which he was constrained by the treaty to accept. Meanwhile, Ogerio Scoto and

Giovanni Pontano Giovanni Pontano (1426–1503), later known as Giovanni Gioviano ( la, Ioannes Iovianus Pontanus), was a humanist and poet from Cerreto di Spoleto, in central Italy. He was the leading figure of the Accademia Pontaniana after the death of Antonio ...

were sent to Cagliari as ''

podestà Podestà (, English: Potestate, Podesta) was the name given to the holder of the highest civil office in the government of the cities of Central and Northern Italy during the Late Middle Ages. Sometimes, it meant the chief magistrate of a city ...

'' and castellan respectively. Chiano then expelled the Pisans from the

Castel di Castro Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...

and granted it to the Genoese. Following this, the ''filopisani''"Pisan-allied." judges of

Gallura Gallura ( sdn, Gaddura or ; sc, Caddura ) is a region in North-Eastern Sardinia, Italy. The name ''Gallùra'' is allegedly supposed to mean "stony area". Geography Gallùra has a surface of and it is situated between 40°55'20"64 latitude ...

and

Arborea Arborea is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, whose economy is largely based on agriculture and cattle breeding with production of vegetables, rice, fruit and milk (notably the local milk product Arborea). Histo ...

John Visconti John (or ''Giovanni'') Visconti (died 1275) was the Judge of Gallura from 1238 to his death. He was a member of the Visconti dynasty of Pisa. John was the son of Ubaldo I Visconti and cousin of Ubaldo of Gallura. When the latter Ubaldo drew up ...

and William of Capraia, invaded Cagliari and besieged the eponymous chief city. Gherardo and

Ugolino della Gherardesca Ugolino della Gherardesca (March 1289), Count of Donoratico, was an Italian nobleman, politician and naval commander. He was frequently accused of treason and features prominently in Dante's ''Divine Comedy''. Biography In the 13th century, the ...

brought eight ships to the siege on behalf of Pisa. Chiano, then in Genoa, left that city with twenty four galleys and followed the Tuscan coast, capturing some Pisan vessels along the way. He arrived at Cagliari too late, was defeated and captured. He was quickly assassinated by a Pisan at

Santa Igia Santa Igia or Santa Ilia, modern Santa Gilla lagoon (''Santa Ilia'' being a contraction of ''Santa Cecilia''Corrado Zedda; p. 121.), was a city in Sardinia, in what is now Italy, which existed from the 9th century AD to 1258, when it was destroyed ...

later that year. The battle and his death occurred sometime between 17 July and 15 October. He was succeeded on the throne by his cousin William III, in accordance with his will of 1254. There is a street named Via Giudice Chiano in Cagliari today.

Notes

Sources

*Boscolo, A. "Chiano di Massa, Guglielmo Cepolla, Genova e la caduta del giudicato di Cagliari (1254–1258)." ''Miscellanei di storia ligure''. IV (1966), pp 7–18. *Ghisalberti, Alberto M. ''Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani''. Rome.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Torchitorio 05 of Cagliari 1256 deaths Judges (judikes) of Cagliari Year of birth unknown Place of birth unknown